10 Nail Hacks Every Girl Needs to Know

1. Chill out

After you paint your nails, rinse your nails under cold water for one to two minutes. This allows them to dry faster, so you don’t have to do that little drying dance with your hands and risk smudging them.

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2. Straight edges ARE possible

Tape is a great nail hack for creating those intricate patterns you want to replicate. Pick the colors that you would like to use. Paint on a base coat, then cut strips of regular tape to the size that you want. Stick them on your nails in the shape of whatever pattern you desire, and then paint over it with your second color. Wait until the polish dries and just peel it off. It’s as simple as that! You can use this to create zig-zags, stripes, or even the American flag for a little 4th of July fun! Make sure the tape isn’t too sticky as it will damage the look of your base coat and may be tricky to peel off.

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3. Shine bright… like a glowstick

We all know how much fun we had with glowsticks as children, but who says it has to stop? Break open that glowstick and pour it into a bottle of clear nail polish. Paint over your basecoat for glow-in-the dark fun! This nail hack would be perfect for spooking people on Halloween!

4. DIY!

We all know how hard it is to choose between bottles of nail polish. Too many times you will find yourself staring at the cascading rows of colors asking yourself “Cherry red or Strawberry rose?” Thanks to this nifty nail hack, you can make your own shade of nail polish! All you need is a bit of eye shadow pigment. Mix it with a little – yep you guessed it – clear nail polish and voila! A perfect nail polish for the perfect night out!

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5. Magic Eraser

Now we aren’t professionals, so having a magic nail polish eraser would be nice. Luckily, there’s a nail hack that works just as well. Before you paint your nails, outline them with lotion. If any nail polish escapes onto your skin you can easily wipe it off later.

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6. Vinegar isn’t just for salad

Sure it goes great in dressing, but did you know that you could also use it to clean your nails before you start painting? This gets rid of any residue from previous painting sessions.

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7. Peel and Stick

This is one of my favorite nail hacks. Instead of trying to delicately craft those perfect flowers, you can pre-paint them on a plastic surface, such as a sandwich bag, and attach them to your nails after they’re dry with some clear nail polish.

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8. Sharpie to the Rescue

If you want intricate nails, but don’t want to go to great lengths, bust out the Sharpie. Just make sure to spray a light layer of hairspray on your nails before you add on the top coat.

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9. Matte for Days

Glossy is out, matte is in. For this awesome nail hack, just add a little cornstarch to a bottle of clear nail polish and watch your nails transform!

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10. Secret weapons

Want French tips? Use a rubber band or a band-aid to get the perfect curve. Fix on the band-aid where you want your tip to start. Paint over it and remove for a nice, clean, classic look.